


Be My Words

by fallingdownthefandomhole



Category: Hetalia: Axis Powers
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, Alternate Universe - Human, Deaf Character, M/M, deaf-ish character
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2015-03-23
Updated: 2015-03-28
Packaged: 2018-03-19 05:27:23
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 2
Words: 2,366
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3598074
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fallingdownthefandomhole/pseuds/fallingdownthefandomhole
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>So far, Romano's been able to get through high school just fine without being able to hear. But when his teachers assign him a "personal tutor", will he be forced to open up and make his world just a little bigger? High School AU</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. Chapter 1

~Romano, Age 15~

_“As the number of faces in a pyramid increases, it begins to look like a cone. You can think of the lateral surfaces as many small triangles, or as a sector of a circle.”_

Oh god, were the other students really that stupid? This was a 10th grade class, did they really need to point out that a cone looks like a pyramid with many faces? That simple fact was something I’d figured out when I was in elementary school.

_“Step 1: What is the area of the base?_

_Step 2: What is the lateral surface area in terms of_ l _and_ r _?_

_Step 3: Write the formula for the surface area of the cone.”_

Writing down the formula, I quickly glanced up to the teacher to see where she was in the lesson. Looking at the board, I could see that the rest of the class was still trying to figure out how to find the surface area of a pyramid. I could only image how boring the class would be if I was forced to listen to the teacher drone on and on about the formula to find the area of a regular polygon.

Sometimes it was nice to not be able to hear.

 

Ever since that day in the eighth grade, I haven’t been able to hear a word that anyone said. Technically, I wasn’t really _deaf_. Or, at least, I don’t consider myself to be. If I was deaf, I’d care. But honestly, I don’t mind not being able to hear anything.

Sure, I miss listening to music, or the sound of birds chirping in the morning. And yeah, sometimes the way people looked at me when they found out bugged the crap out of me as well.

Although, the therapy was probably the worst. You see, the doctors aren’t quite sure what caused the whole not-being-able-to-hear thing. Well, that’s a lie. They don’t know what _caused_ it, but they know _why_ I can’t hear. It apparently has something to do with part of my brain dying, although it seems more like it’s just not working rather than dying. The thing is, due to the brain’s plasticity, the doctors hoped that, with therapy, I’d regain my ability to hear.

Needless to say, I didn’t enjoy it.

The thing is, I didn’t really _want_ to be able to hear again. It’s not like anyone really had anything nice to say to me, anyways. I’ve never had many friends, and I didn’t have the greatest relationship with the few that I did have. It wasn’t any better with my dad, either. I guess you could say that I’m just pretty bad with people overall.

The only person that I really did ever talk to was Feliciano. Now, don’t get me wrong, I still talk to him. Although, I suppose the term “talk” is used loosely. Since I can’t hear, most people assume that I don’t talk. So I don’t. It’s easy enough to just act like I can’t and then most people just leave me alone. I mean, who wants to hang out with the weird deaf kid?

Although, even though I preferred not to communicate with people, I was taught how to read lips. It was a pain in the ass to learn, but it’s helpful to know at times. The nice thing about it is that I can choose whether or not I want to know what people are saying, but they don’t know if I know what they’re saying or not.

However, since I couldn’t hear and I refused to speak, the teachers decided to just stick me in the most basic classes they could. And since I can’t participate in class, I’m usually just given a textbook and a worksheet to fill out during class time. It makes homework virtually non-existent, but makes school a waste of times since I pretty much already know the material.

 

Turning back to the worksheet, I finished the last problem ( _grazie a Dio_ ) and looked up at the clock. Only a couple more minutes until school was out…

A light tap on my upper arm startled me. Looking to see who had tapped my arm, I saw the teacher (I still need to learn her name…) standing next to me. She held a piece of paper, which she handed me to read.

_I would like to talk to you after class_

I nodded my head in response as she continued walking. I wonder what she wanted. I’d been turning in all my assignments on time, and I haven’t constantly been late to class like some of the other students.

All of the sudden, the rest of the class was standing up, and, the handful who had already pulled their stuff together, were leaving. Looking up at the clock, I noticed that class had ended. It was odd, how sometimes time moved so slowly and other times five minutes went by at the blink of an eye.

I neatly stacked my notebooks and set them atop my desk before I stood up and walked to the back of the room, where the teacher’s desk was located. I had just reached her desk when I noticed movement out of the corner of my eye. I turned around just in time to see a dark-haired boy set down his backpack on the desk nearest to the teacher’s.

I didn’t recognize the other boy, but he appeared to be around my age, perhaps a year older. When he stood up, I noticed that his skin was tan, but it was a natural tan, as if he had been working outside in the sun. He also had brilliant green eyes, the color of emeralds and fresh grass. His t-shirt and jeans looked well worn, but clean and comfortable, the kind that you would wear on a lazy afternoon.

I’m not sure how long I stood there, observing the stranger, before the teacher (dammit, I really need to learn her name!) stood up and shook hands with the green-eyed boy.

 

Well that was odd.

And now she’s talking. To me. Shit. All I caught was ‘will help you’. I gave her a confused look, and thankfully, she spoke again.

“This is Antonio. He’s going to be your personal tutor from now on.”

Wait, tutor? I didn’t need any damn tutor, I was doing just fine in my shitty classes. I grabbed a piece of paper from my pocket (I learned that it was a good idea to carry a small pad of paper) and scribbled out a quick response.

_Why?_

The teacher rolled her eyes, as if that was an incredibly stupid question.

“I told you. Your other teachers and I have decided that we should move you up in several of your classes. But we agreed that we should have someone help you in your classes. And Antonio volunteered to take on that role.” The boy, who I’d previously been told was Antonio, simply nodded his head politely as the teacher spoke.

“So please, Romano, be nice”

That last comment pissed me off. _Nice_? Why the hell would I be nice to the idiot? He’d have to be seriously stupid to volunteer to help the poor deaf kid. Rolling my eyes, I grabbed my books and began to leave before either of them could try and stop me.

 

I was almost to my locker when I felt the hand grab my arm.

Turning around, I saw that it wasn’t the teacher, but Antonio. I gave him the ‘what the hell do you want’ look, expecting that he would just let go of my arm. But he didn’t.

“I’m sorry, that probably wasn’t the best first impression”

Tch. As if I cared. I pulled my arm away, hoping he’d leave me alone. But, of course, this guy was even more of an idiot than I thought, and he grabbed my arm to stop me. Again.

“Wait, don’t leave”

 _Dio_ , what was wrong with this _idiota_? Couldn’t he tell that I didn’t want (or need!) a tutor? Clearly not. Pulling out yet another piece of paper, I quickly wrote out a simple sentence.                                                                                                      

_Leave me alone_

To my surprise, he didn’t say anything back. No, instead he wrote his response, right below mine.

_Nope!_

I’d never seen anyone do that. In all fairness, I rarely talk to anyone to begin with, but most everyone I write to always response verbally.

_What do you want?_

Glancing up from the paper, I could see Antonio smiling. Now that I think about it, he had been smiling since I first saw him. Idiot.

_I want to be your friend!_

My… friend?

Maybe I’d have to give him a chance, after all.


	2. Chapter 2

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Just for clarification:  
> If something is in italics, it's written  
> If something is in apostrophes, it's something that has been understood through lip-reading

Waking up, I could feel warmth hitting my face. It was bright, but for some reason I didn’t mind so much. Cracking one eye open, I spotted where the light was coming from. Despite the fact that it was the middle of winter, the time when it was usually cold and damp, the sun was shining brightly outside.

It was like a cliché Saturday morning wake up, the kind where there are birds chirping happily and a father cooking pancakes for the rest of the picture-perfect family.

However, even without my hearing I knew that there were no birds singing outside my window and that there wasn’t a piping hot plate of pancakes waiting for me.

 

Throwing off my blankets and pulling on a t-shirt and pajama pants, I lazily walked down the hall into the kitchen. Careful to not make too much noise and wake Feliciano, I began making myself a cup of coffee. I don’t particularly enjoy the drink, but it’s bearable if you add milk.

Making sure to pour a large amount of milk into the slightly chipped mug, I took a long sip of the steaming beverage. I immediately regretted not waiting for it to cool as I felt the burning sensation in my mouth and down my throat. Taking another sip (making sure to blow some cool air on it first), I remembered the events of the previous day.

+++

What do you want?

_Glancing up from the paper, I could see Antonio smiling. Now that I think about it, he had been smiling since I first saw him. Idiot._

I want to be your friend!

_My… friend?_

_Who the hell would want to be my_ friend _?_

Well, too bad, I don’t want to be your friend

_Writing out the words, I realized that my response probably, just perhaps, wasn’t the nicest think I could’ve said. It wasn’t like Antonio was being mean (if anything, he was being too nice), it was just… I didn’t trust him._

Aw, c’mon Roma, please, just give me a chance?

_Annoying bastard. The bus was going to leave any minute now, and I had the feeling he wasn’t going to just let me leave._

If I say I’ll be your friend, will you leave me alone?

_The smiling bastard just nodded his head, all while his smile brightened even more. I suppose I should take that as a yes._

Fine. I’ll be your friend.

+++

I shook the thought out of my head. Why the hell did I agree to be his friend? I mean, he didn’t really think that I meant it, right? Oh god, knowing how much of an idiot he is, I bet he did… What did I get myself into?

My train of thought came to a halt when I recognized a familiar figure in my peripheral vision.

‘Good morning Roma!’

I simply nodded my head in response as Feliciano began making himself something to eat. I prepared my own breakfast of toast and jam alongside him, neither of us uttering a single word.

Now while this is pretty common for me, it was rare for Feli to be quiet. Usually he was blabbering on about one thing or another, talking too fast for me to even possibly attempt to understand what he’s saying. So, when he was completely silent, I immediately knew something was up.

Grabbing a piece of paper, I wrote out a quick question

_Is something wrong?_

I waited patiently for a response as Feli read my question. He shook his head no quickly before talking again.

‘No, no, everything’s fine!’

...

Yeah, something’s definiatly wrong.

_Are you sure?_

Feli nodded his head, then said something I couldn’t quite recognize. Giving him a confused look, he understood right away.

‘Sorry, I forgot that you can’t understand Italian!’

...Oh. Yeah. If there’s one thing I miss about not being able to hear, it’s definitaly the fact that I can’t understand our mother’s language. You see, if you’re taught how to read lips in America, you’re only taught how to read English. And, sadly enough, trying to understand Italian is much more difficult that trying to understand English.

‘Everything’s fine, I promise!’

Feli was acting a bit suspicious, but I didn’t really have any other choice but to believe him.

_Alright then._

Finishing writing out the sentence, I took my last bite of toast. Washing off the plate, I scribbled out a quick note my Feli

_I’m going for a walk, alright?_

A quick nod from Feliciano was all I needed before I was slipping on my jacket and shoes. It was nice outside, and I wasn’t eager to spend any more time in that house than necessary. It was never pleasant when dad woke up.

 

I’ve always loved the way the sunlight illuminates the trees. But once I lost my hearing, it’s become even more beautiful. The colors, they’ve become more brilliant. I’ve always loved how colors look. They can convey their beauty without uttering a word, even a child can understand. Colors are so simple, yet… They have a certain complexity to them.

I was just walking down my usual path, past the park and through the town, when I saw him.

_Dio_ , that sounds so cliché.

But seriously. I was walking past a grocery store when I saw his tousled brown hair.

Shit, he noticed me.

And now the idiot’s waving. Like a maniac.

I don’t really have a choice now, do I?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm sorry if this chapter seems short (it really is, only 900 words), this past week has just been really busy. But next week should be back to normal, so I'll hopefully be able to write then!


End file.
